Cockburn is a seductive writer. This is a good argument for the Marxist analysis of the American Civil War, that the Northern side was more 'progressive', thus worth supporting. Well, it's always easy to be brave with other people's lives. Karl Marx had the Atlantic between him and the battlefield; Cockburn has 150 years. I say, if I were in New York in 1861, I would appeal to people to resist the draft. I would say "workers, don't fight for your bosses!". If that didn't work, I would say "white men, don't fight to abolish slavery!". The war caused the death of over 600,000 people. If you think it was 'worth it', well, would you volunteer to fight to abolish slavery in Mauritania or other countries which still have it? Thought not.